Javy Baez says Francisco Lindor is the best shortstop of their generation

Javy Baez has high praise for Francisco Lindor.

Javy Baez and Francisco Lindor are two of the best shortstops in baseball. Both players are also very familiar with each other as they are both from Puerto Rico and have teamed up in the World Baseball Classic.

Baez and the Chicago Cubs are facing Francisco Lindor and the Cleveland Indians this week and he made sure to make a strong claim about who is the better shortstop between the two.

Javy Baez declares Francisco Lindor to be the best

Baez calling Lindor the greatest shortstop of the generation is not an outrageous claim at all. Lindor is set to earn his own mega-deal in the next two years and is already a four-time All-Star and two-time Gold Glove winner in four full MLB seasons. He played 99 games as a rookie in 2015 and managed to finish second in American League Rookie of the Year voting.

Baez is no slouch himself, but he has still failed to win a single Gold Glove since becoming a full-time player back in 2016. However, he did play on a Cubs team that beat the Indians in the 2016 World Series so he will always have that.

Lindor is a perennial MVP candidate and entered the 2020 season with a career WAR of 27. Baez entered with a mark of 16.8. But as he says, he is still the only one known as “El Mago,” or “The Magician” in English.

Both players have carved out nice careers for themselves and are on the same track when it comes to getting paid. Baez and Lindor are set to be free agents starting in 2022 and even though Lindor should earn more, Baez is going to be a very rich man as well.

Seeing Baez’s praise for Lindor is great for the game. Players should be propping each other up like this all the time. Declaring Lindor the best then beating him head-to-head also makes Baez and the Cubs look better. That is why he remains “El Mago.”